Bingham Cup bid document by Marketing Manchester

this is Manchester 2012 This is Manchesterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bid for the 2012 Bingham Cup

CONTENTS

Contents Foreword the Manchester Vision Letters of support Our sporting heritage the Venues the tournament Visit Manchester Getting here Getting around Manchester accommodation cost of attending & registration Marketing & sponsorship Legacy & sustainability Budget support organisations & infrastructure summary appendix

2 4 6 12 14 18 22 26 27 28 30 32 34 35 37 38 40

FOREWORD

Foreword Fellow rugby players, in 2001, 25 guys from the Manchester Village spartans rUFc travelled to Washington Dc for the first gay rugby invitational tournament. a desire to play rugby brought them together. they played hard and partied hard. they knew it was about being a good sport and playing the game they loved with like-minded men. that tournament brought to life a simple truth: anyone can play rugby, regardless of background. Manchester 2012 will seek to embody this spirit. We will honour the memory of Mark Bingham by delivering an outstanding gay rugby world championship and we will put the spirit of rugby at the heart of our tournament. We will raise the bar. and, as a reflection of this, i’m pleased to announce that 2007 World rugby cup and 2008/2009 heineken cup Final referee nigel Owens will be our tournament head referee. We are also delighted to welcome former British and irish Lions captain, Gareth thomas, and england rugby world cup winner Ben cohen MBe as ambassadors for our bid. We have the resources to deliver. We have already reserved our tournament venue and our financial model does not rely on securing large-scale corporate sponsorship to be viable. this bid is in partnership with Visit Manchester, Marketing Manchester and Manchester city council, and we have the backing of the rugby Football Union. We are confident Manchester 2012 will also leave a significant legacy. We anticipate being able to welcome new teams from Bristol and Leeds in the UK as well as Portugal and spain. We also commit to covenant any profits back to iGraB to establish a bursary to help players travel to future Bingham cups where cost is a barrier to participation. Manchester is the original modern city. the industrial revolution started here, the computer was invented here and the atom was first split here. Our compact city, easily accessible to most iGraB members, will provide the perfect backdrop to rugby in the heart of the city. Finally, as founder members of the international gay rugby movement, we understand the 2012 Bingham cup isn’t our tournament, it’s yours. We would be proud custodians of Mark’s legacy. Fellow iGraB members, this is Manchester. this is Manchester’s bid for the 2012 Bingham cup. Yours in rugby,

alex smith, chairman, Manchester 2012 & chairman Manchester Village spartans rUFc

FOREWORD

Message from Gareth Thomas Captain of Wales and the British and Irish Lions, Wales’ most capped player, and out gay man no matter what level of the game we’re competing in - be it Bingham cup or 6 nations i’m proud of our achievements as rugby players and in breaking down stereotypes. i have followed the Bingham cup for several years and seen it go from strength to strength each time. i want to help Manchester 2012 be the best Bingham cup ever and have a genuine impact on the sport. i hope that my support will give the tournament the proﬁle and recognition that it deserves. i know that the Village spartans will put on a great tournament and i look forward to being part of Manchester 2012. Best wishes, Gareth

Message from Ben Cohen, MBE Sale Sharks winger and England rugby world cup winner Members of iGraB, i’m passionate about diversity in rugby and believe everyone, regardless of who they are should be able to play our great sport. When you’re on the ﬁeld, there are no barriers just rugby players. i’m pleased to back Manchester’s bid to host the 2012 Bingham cup and i know the city will do your tournament justice. i look forward to seeing you all in Manchester. Best wishes, Ben

Message from Nigel Owen 2007 World Rugby World Cup and 2008/2009 Heineken Cup Final Referee i wish Manchester every success with its bid for the 2012 Bingham cup and if the city wins, i look forward to being your tournament head referee. nigel

THE MANCHESTER VISION

The Manchester Vision We have a vision: a Bingham cup where as many teams from as many countries as possible are able to participate. Welcome to Manchester 2012, a Bingham cup where rugby is at the heart of the city, where no venue is more than 15 minutes away in a city less than 10 hours ﬂight time from most iGraB clubs. We understand that hosting the Bingham cup is not just about great rugby; it is about providing an amazing experience. We also recognise players will be using their valuable holiday to come and play at the Bingham cup and that’s why our tournament will focus on two things: sporting excellence on the pitch and an outstanding social scene off it.

Rugby at the heart of the city

Best in class venues

Our tournament will place rugby at the heart of the city. this means hotels, bars, registration venue, tournament village and the opening and closing parties will never be more than 15 minutes away. We realise that when your mind is on the game, what you need is a short and convenient journey to the pitch.

a short walk away from your accommodation you’ll ﬁnd Manchester’s historic Victorian Gothic town hall – the stunning location for our opening ceremony. You’ll also ﬁnd the international convention centre, the setting for our closing party.

arriving at Manchester international airport or Manchester’s mainline Piccadilly railway station, you’ll check into your accommodation in one of our choice of city centre hotels (booked through our professional accommodation partners Visit Manchester). You’ll step out from your accommodation straight into the heart of one of europe’s major cities with all the leisure facilities that come with it. Manchester may be home to three million people, but our compact city centre means getting around is easy.

Getting to and from the game will be easy. We’ll lay on transport for each team taking you to and from the city centre to south central Manchester where you’ll ﬁnd the tournament village: Broughton Park rUFc. Broughton Park is a professional rugby club, and they’ll open their doors to iGraB for the Bingham cup. this secure space will host our team village, changing and shower facilities, medical centre, kit wash facility as well as refreshments, bar and media hub.

THE MANCHESTER VISION

We know iGraB was founded on the basis of inclusion and breaking down barriers, and that’s why Broughton Park will also play host to women’s rugby. if you need some time out, you will be able to head to your team ‘home bar’ in Manchester’s Gay Village. For the duration of the tournament you’ll be able to ofﬁcially adopt a bar, giving you and your team mates a drinking home away from home. We’re fortunate that the Manchester Gay Village is one of the top gay tourist destinations in europe.

Furthering the spirit of rugby We will seek to promote the traditions and camaraderie that are the spirit of rugby.

We also recognise that many countries have recently experienced a recession, and we believe our tournament will offer real value. the registration fee will be from £100 per player. We all want a successful Bingham cup, and we want as many clubs as possible to participate in Manchester 2012. We believe travel time or cost shouldn’t be obstacles to making this happen. Over the coming pages we’ll show you in more detail what a Manchester Bingham cup would look like, who our partners are, and how much it will cost. and, we’ll show you why we believe Manchester can deliver an outstanding international gay rugby championship.

the rFU has already approved the Barbarians participation in the tournament, ensuring their participation in Manchester 2012. Our closing party will be a traditional rugby dinner. On pitch, our tournament will include a ﬁrst timers vs. old timers exhibition match pitting those who have never been to a Bingham cup against players of the ﬁrst cup in san Francisco.

An accessible tournament Our commitment to accessibility goes beyond just ensuring venues are near your hotel. Manchester is easily and cheaply accessible from europe and north america.

Manchester’s bid at a glance 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

a rugby tournament played at a top class British rugby club elite referees including head referee nigel Owens Under 10 hours ﬂight time for most iGraB clubs all locations within 15 minutes of each other a traditional rugby dinner closing party Wide choice of city centre accommodation Financial model which doesn’t rely on sponsorship to be viable early tournament registration fee of £100 a home bar for your team in Manchester’s gay village Proﬁts covenanted to iGraB for future Bingham travel

Already confirmed ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

Our tournament venue: Broughton Park approval from the rFU for the tournament approval from the rFU for the Barbarians to participate Former rugby World cup referee as head referee Financial model in place approval and backing of the city of Manchester Partners in delivery: Marketing Manchester and Visit Manchester

Tournament dates subject to further consultation, and agreement with iGraB, our preferred tournament dates for the 2012 Bingham cup are 1-3 June. these dates coincide with the Diamond Jubilee of the accession of Queen elizabeth ii, with major celebrations planned for the days immediately after the tournament.

LETTERS OF SUPPORT

Wednesday 2nd June 2010 Alex Smith Chair – Village Spartans RFC c/o Rookwood, Clarendon Crescent Sale Cheshire M33 2DE Dear Alex Bingham Cup - Manchester 2012 Thank you for your recent communications. On behalf of the Rugby Football Union I write to endorse and offer our support to both yourselves and the City of Manchester as you bid to host the Bingham Cup in 2012. This support falls within the remit of both the ‘Community Rugby’ and ‘Tournaments & Competitions’ departments who have agreed in principle to continue to support you through the planning process and, where appropriate, during the event itself. Permission has been granted, in principle, by the RFUs Tournaments & Competitions department to host a 15-a-side festival outside of the official season dates in the summer of 2012. Final permission may only be granted once the dates of the event are finalised. We are pleased and excited that this prestigious international tournament in the LGB sports calendar may be brought back to England and look forward to working with you as you move towards submission of the bid and ultimately towards the delivery of the festival. I would be grateful if you could keep the RFU up to date with any significant progress made in due course. Yours sincerely

Nic Scott RFU Equity, Inclusion & Safeguarding Manager

Rugby House, 200, Whitton Road, Twickenham, TW2 7BA www.rfu.com 0208 831 7479

LETTERS OF SUPPORT

Marketing Manchester 27 July 2010 The Chairman Village Spartans RUFC c/o Sale Sports Club Rookwood Clarendon Crescent Sale Cheshire M33 2DE

Dear Alex, Re: Support for Manchester to host the 2012 Bingham Cup I am writing to express full support on behalf of Marketing Manchester for the city to host the 2012 Bingham Cup. As an organisation, we recognise the great importance attached to bidding for, and staging such an international tournament. Manchester is a true sporting city and we have experience in hosting and delivering international sporting events. With world class restaurants, shopping, culture and nightlife, Manchester has everything to provide an unforgettable experience for your visitors. Manchester has one of the largest gay communities in the UK, so both on and off the pitch, we look forward to giving Bingham Cup teams a warm welcome to our city. Yours sincerely,

Andrew Stokes Chief Executive, Marketing Manchester

Carverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Warehouse, 77 Dale Street, Manchester, M1 2HG Chief Executive Andrew Stokes Telephone 0161 237 1010 Fax 0161 228 2960 www.marketingmanchester.com A company limited by guarantee registered in England no. 319 259 2

LETTERS OF SUPPORT

Broughton Park Football Club ( Rugby Union) 2 Houghend Crescent Mauldeth Road West Manchester M21 7TA

Tel: 0161 861 0854 Email:- operations.manager@broughton–park.org.uk Web:- www.broughton-park.org.uk

Founded 1882

1st June 2010 Alex Smith Chair – Village Spartans RUFC C/O Rockwood Clarendon Crescent Sale Cheshire M33 2DE

Dear Alex, Bingham Cup – Manchester 2012 Further to our recent meeti ngs and communications, we would like to offer our support and endorsement to your bid for the 2012 Bingham Cup. Broughton Park FC (Rugby Union ) believes that we have some of the best rugby facilities in the North of England and we are pleased that you have selected Hough End as the preferred site of the 2012 Bi ngham Cup. We have supplied a cost proposal to you and confirm that Hough End in available in June 2012. We look forward to working with you on developing your bid. Yours Sincerely

David Poppitt Chairman Broughton Park FC (Rugby Union)

LETTERS OF SUPPORT

KINGS CROSS STEELERS RFC

Holland Road London E15 3BP 13th June 2010

The Chairman Village Spartans RUFC c/o Sale Sports Club Rookwood Clarendon Crescent Sale Cheshire M33 2DE Dear Alex, On behalf of the Kings Cross Steelers I would like to add our weight and full support to your proposed bid to host the next Bingham Cup. As a fellow club in the British Isles we welcome the opportunity for the Spartans to bring the tournament back. Assuming it is 2012 that would be an added bonus with the celebrations around the 60th Anniversary of Her Majestyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s accession to the throne, The Olympics and London hosting the World Gay Pride. We are standing by to assist you in any way that we can. I know that the Rugby Football Union has fully endorsed your bid and are ready to do all that they can to support you in throwing the best Bingham Cup Tournament imaginable. Added to all this would be the warmth of the welcome for which Manchester is rightly proud. To the Spartans we say Good Luck. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s make the next Bingham Cup the Manchester one. Yours sincerely T J Sullivan Chairman Member of the Rugby Football Union Member of the Essex County Rugby Football Union Member of the East London Community Sports Association Member of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board RFU English Clubs Championship - Essex League 2

LETTERS OF SUPPORT

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OUR SPORTING HERITAGE

Our sporting heritage Manchester has a rich sporting heritage, with a reputation for attracting national and international events and a passion for sport at a community level.

in 2002 the city hosted the commonwealth Games, it is home to two giants in english football – Manchester city and Manchester United – as is also home to the only premiership rugby team in north West england, sale sharks rUFc. in 2008 the city celebrated Manchester World sport 08 and in advance of London 2012, the city will host a number of international teams including swim australia and athletes from thailand. What this means for our Bingham cup bid is that iGraB can have conﬁdence Manchester can deliver a sporting event of any size. Our partners in this bid – Marketing Manchester and Manchester city council – have been an integral part in the delivery of the city’s sporting programme and will ensure that Manchester 2012 is the most professionally-run Bingham cup ever. Manchester is also home to the Village spartans rUFc, which was founded in January 1999. the idea of setting up a rugby team in Manchester for gay or bisexual men was ﬁrst discussed in a conversation between two

friends, simon stanley and Duncan Leckie, in Manchester in august 1998. Both had heard about the Kings cross steelers in London which, in 1996, had become the first rugby team specifically set up to provide a supportive playing environment for men who identify as gay or bisexual. “Why don't we set one up in Manchester?” they asked. Village spartans played in the first ever rugby game between two gay teams against Kings cross steelers in august 1999 as part of Manchester Pride. ever since, the club has remained committed to growing the global gay rugby family. For a number of years in the early ‘00s spartans ran their famous rugby clinics, hosting players from Washington renegades, san Francisco Fog and elsewhere in the Usa and europe. Village spartans also participated in tournaments in London in 2000 and Washington Dc in 2001. these events were the forerunners of the Bingham cup and it was at these events that iGraB was born. today the club has its own club house and pitches and is part of the cheshire rFU League system. Last season the club celebrated its 10th anniversary.

OUR SPORTING HERITAGE

THE VENUES

The Venues tournaments are only as good as the venues in which they take place. We believe our selection of distinctive venues reﬂects our commitment to deliver excellence off and on pitch, where no venue is more than 15 minutes away.

Broughton Park RUFC after an extensive selection process the Village spartans has chosen one of the best rugby venues in north england, Broughton Park rUFc, as the location of the tournament. Founded in 1882 Broughton Park rUFc is one of the largest and best-known clubs in the north West of england, running more than ﬁve squads and a thriving youth rugby programme. the club is located in south central Manchester. as a professional rugby club, Broughton Park knows what it takes to host a rugby tournament. and, the club’s multi-acre site means we can offer all facilities in one space, without the need for players or supporters to leave the campus. Highlights: • One championship pitch enclosed and banked for spectators • Five secondary pitches • rugby Pro synthetic pitch • Purpose built modern grandstand with seating and viewing for 250 people • extensive practice pitches • seven changing rooms, medical room and kit wash facilities • Large bar and catering facilities for both supporters and players • extensive space for team tented village • 15 minutes from the heart of the city Village spartans has costed the venue and held extensive talks with Broughton Park. We have a letter of support from the club’s chairman, which is appended to this bid document.

Creating a single space the Broughton Park site will be enclosed, creating a campus feel. there will be one central entry point with staffed information desks to direct players and supporters. the size of the Broughton Park campus means it can comfortably accommodate the playing aspect of the tournament in one space. there will be no need for players or supporters to access other facilities from outside the tournament village during play.

Pitches

supplement this with outside catering, located around the pitches for supporters and players.

the choice of ready-made rugby pitches, which are professionally kept by trained rugby grounds keepers, means we can offer a high standard of surfaces on which to play. there are six pitches in total for play, including a championship pitch which will be reserved for the ﬁnals. extensive practice pitches will be available.

having a drink (or three) is part of the rugby tradition. so, the traditional rugby bar at Broughton Park rUFc - with its glazed viewing area overlooking the entire site - will be open throughout.

Player facilities

Tournament support

We will create a secure tented player village next to the championship pitch. each team will have a tent. extra portable toilet facilities will also be provided here.

support facilities will be located in the Broughton Park grounds. here you will ﬁnd the medical centre, the tournament director’s ofﬁce and media centre.

teams will also have access to the seven changing rooms and shower facilities on-site for those who wish to clean up straight after play. the kit wash facility in the clubhouse will be made available to all teams.

Transport

Catering

shuttle buses will run from predetermined locations in the city centre to and from Broughton Park to transport players and supporters. this cost is included within the registration fee. the journey time is under 15 minutes.

catering will be supplied to teams at lunchtime in the form of packed lunches. these will be supplied on playing days direct to each team’s allocated tent. Water will be provided throughout, with each player being provided a water bottle upon registration. We will

For those who do wish to travel on their own, Broughton Park will be less than 10 minutes walk from a new tramline opening in 2011. the tram will take you straight into the heart of the city in under eight minutes.

“Broughton Park FC believes that we have some of the best rugby facilities in the North of England” David Poppitt, chairman, Broughton Park Fc (rugby Union)

Broughton Park Site Plan

THE VENUES

Manchester Town Hall Built in 1877 by the famous Victorian architect alfred Waterhouse, Manchester’s neo-gothic town hall will be the venue for our opening ceremony. the building’s Great hall will be the backdrop for our launch event. We understand the importance of the opening ceremony to players and supporters, particularly in setting the tone for a great tournament. however, we also know that these events haven’t always been wholly successful in terms of catering, so our launch event will be different from previous years. We propose a simpliﬁed event with a short ofﬁcial welcome followed by a drinks reception allowing players to catch up with old friends or meet fellow players and supporters. Furthering the spirit of rugby is our guiding principle, and our aim for this event will be to establish the foundations for the rivalry and camaraderie to be seen throughout the tournament. We will allow enough time in the schedule ahead of the event to allow teams to eat together before joining the party.

Manchester International Convention Centre the Micc is our chosen venue for the Manchester 2012 Bingham cup closing party. informal consultation with previous Bingham cup attendees tells us many expect the closing ceremony to be a social highlight of the tournament. We will takeover the Micc and turn it into a traditional British rugby dinner for the evening. Players from across the world will be able to experience – ﬁrst hand – all the ritual and fun that goes into a traditional rugby dinner. rugby songs will be obligatory! access to nightclubs, for those who have the energy to keep going, will also be lined up for later in the evening.

Your home bar the area around canal street is where you’ll ﬁnd all the gay facilities of Manchester. We know how important it is for teams to have a space in which they can socialise together. and, that’s why we’ll be arranging for a bar on canal street to ofﬁcially adopt a visiting team for the tournament. this bar will be your home bar in the heart of Manchester’s gay scene for the duration of Manchester 2012. here you’ll be able to host socials or simply grab a team meal.

THE VENUES

City centre map Bus Stn.

Opening ceromony

Closing ceromony

Central South Manchester map

City centre

Broughton Park

THE TOURNAMENT

"I prefer rugby to soccer. I enjoy the violence in rugby, except when they start biting each other's ears off." elizabeth taylor

THE TOURNAMENT

The Tournament We are proposing three days of play, with a structure based on the 2010 Minneapolis tournament.

Flexing to IGRAB’s Aspirations From the outset of the bidding process, the Village spartans have been clear that the format of the 2012 competition(s) is to be discussed with and agreed by iGraB, not dictated by us. it is, after all, iGraB’s tournament not ours. We and our partners, both regionally and nationally within the rFU, are happy to abide by any tournament structure agreed and laid down by the iGraB Board. Our approach to discussion and agreeing the tournament structure will be open, ﬂexible and collegiate.

Some learnings from Minneapolis 2010 We set out below our initial thoughts on how the tournament could be structured, based on our experience of participating in all ﬁve Bingham cup’s to date, as well as Union cups and local tournaments.

We feel that the structure applied for the 2010 Bingham cup in Minneapolis was largely a great success. it ensured that all teams played at least 5 games and retained an interest into the third day; it demanded high levels of ﬁtness and strength in depth for a team to win competitions; and it allowed for clubs to progress (or regress) as a result of the quality of their play and to be matched against teams of similar ability in the latter stages of competition. all this led to exciting and engaging rugby, throughout at each level of competition.

Proposed structure (for discussion with IGRAB) We envisage a structure very similar to that used in Minneapolis. Depending on the number of teams, there will be two or three initial tiers of competition. the Manchester 2012 organising committee will recommend to iGraB’s tournament liaison committee an allocation of teams to each of the initial tiers of competition. this will be based on performance at the previous Bingham cup and consultation with team liaisons. Final decisions in this regard will

be made jointly by the organising and liaison committees to ensure unanimity and consistency. each of the tiers will be divided into divisions comprising 4 teams. the composition of each division will be determined on the basis of seedings derived from the results of Bingham cup 2010. each team plays against each of the others in its division. the number of divisions in each tier will be designed to ensure that the structure will allow teams to move between tiers with the bottom four teams from an upper tier matched against the top four teams from the tier below for the knockout stage of the tournament.

"Rugby is a good occasion for keeping thirty bullies far from the center of the city." Oscar Wilde

THE TOURNAMENT

at the end of the group stage, as in Minneapolis, all teams within the tier will be ranked against each other, with the top 8 teams in the upper tier proceeding to the Bingham cup quarter final. Loosing quarter finalists will then compete for the Bingham Plate. similarly, the next ranked 8 teams will enter a quarter final for the Bowl competition, with losing quarter finalists competing for the shield. this pattern will be repeated for the next 8 teams for the Vase and crest, and so on.

Points scoring in line with Bingham cup Minneapolis 2010 and the vast majority of elite competitions, the points scoring system for the group stages as follows: • 4 points are awarded for a win • 2 points are awarded for a draw • 1 additional (bonus) point is awarded to a team that loses a match by 7 points or fewer • 1 additional (bonus) point is awarded to a team scoring 4 tries or more in a match at the end of the group stages, if teams have the same number of points, placings will be determined (in order) by: • • • • •

Points difference tries scored converted tries scored Points for Points against

Resolving tied games in the knockout stages in the case of a draw in the knockout stages of the tournament, there will be two ﬁve minute periods of over time. if the scores are still level then there will be a two further ﬁve minute periods of ‘sudden death’ overtime. if the score remains tied, the team that has scored the greatest number of tries in the game will proceed and if the result remains unresolved, there will be a ‘kick off’.

Rookies v Old Timers Exhibition Game as part of the Manchester 2012 bid’s emphasis on tradition, on the spirit of rugby and to further enhance the camaraderie of gay rugby across the globe, we propose to include a special exhibition game. this will be between a team of players for whom Manchester 2012 is their first Bingham cup and a team of individuals who participated in the very first Bingham cup in san Francisco in 2002. We aim to solve the ageold question of whether youth and exuberance is a match for age and treachery! subject to more detailed tournament scheduling, we propose that this game be the curtain raiser for the Bingham cup final. this will give time for participants in the finals of the lower competition tiers to get changed and ready to watch the final, whilst also giving the finalist teams a little longer to prepare for the big match.

Barbarians the Barbarians is part of rugby’s unique heritage. a Bingham cup without a Barbarians side is, in our view, a lesser tournament. the inclusion of the Baa Baas not only means that unafﬁliated players from across the globe can come together to compete in the tournament, but is also an outward demonstration of the spirit of rugby, and of the brotherhood that only

rugby gives. We know that, as rugby players, we can go anywhere where there are other rugby players and ﬁnd friends, and you can be sure that the Barbarians team in Manchester will bring people together who remain friends for life. the rFU supports the participation of the Barbarians in Manchester 2012.

Women’s Competition Our consultations with iGraB member clubs highlighted that a number of them are now running women’s sides. We would be delighted to include a women’s competition as part of Manchester 2012. We are already in discussions with a number of female rugby teams in the north West of england and have initial commitments from several clubs, to help us make this happen. these clubs are very excited to participate themselves and supplement the number of international teams that come to ensure we have the right number of teams for a meaningful competition. they are also willing to loan players to any teams that come short-handed. Women’s exhibition games have been part of the Bingham cup before – in new York in 2006. Manchester 2012 offers the potential to go one better and have a full and viable women’s competition – the inaugural ‘Women’s Bingham cup’.

“We are pleased and excited that this prestigious international tournament in the LGB sports calendar may be brought back to England” nic scott, rFU

Refereeing Manchester Village spartans is already in discussions with the rFU about how we can ensure that the highest possible calibre of referee. it is our shared aspiration with the rFU for all ofﬁcials to be of elite standard. We have also already agreed with nigel Owens – the out gay international referee (2007 World cup, heineken cup Final 2008 and 2009) - for him to be our head referee for the tournament who will, in addition to other games, referee the Bingham cup Final.

Discipline Yellow cards handed out during the tournament will result in a sin-bin of ﬁve minutes for the player concerned. Players receiving a red card will have their cases reviewed by a disciplinary panel - comprising a representative of the refereeing team, the tournament director and a member of the iGraB tournament liaison committee - to determine whether any further sanction is required.

MEDICAL CARE

Medical care We want everyone to enjoy the rugby at Manchester 2012. and, that’s why we’ve taken steps to ensure that the best possible care is available for all players. Player care during the tournament We will ensure professional medical care is available throughout tournament hours at our Broughton Park venue. the venue has a wellequipped medical room and medical professionals will be on hand at all times during play.

St John’s Ambulance in order to do this we will partner with st John’s ambulance, a volunteer organisation staffed by healthcare professionals who provide ﬁrst aid support at some of the UK’s largest sporting and musical events, including the London Marathon, Wimbledon and the Glastonbury Festival. st John’s provide ambulance, ﬁrst aid and medical services, tailored to the requirements of each individual event. their resources include: • • • •

Qualiﬁed ﬁrst aiders; emergency ambulances and crew; registered nurses, paramedics and doctors; Mobile command and control facilities and mobile treatment centres.

You can ﬁnd out further information on st John’s ambulance by visiting www.sja.org.uk. st John’s ambulance staff will be located at our tournament medical centre.

Sports masseurs We appreciate that not all teams have the resources to bring support staff with them. that’s why our medical centre will also be the site for our team of sports masseurs. this free service will help players recover between games and will be delivered by the Village spartans existing network of professional sports masseurs who have agreed to volunteer their time for free.

Emergency treatment in Manchester

Travelling with HIV

in the event of a serious injury, our tournament venue is less than a 10 minute journey to one of europe’s largest hospitals – central Manchester University Foundation hospital.

there are no restrictions for people entering the UK who are hiV+.

any person entering the UK is entitled to free emergency care in primary care and in a+e/er only. any treatment needed in other parts of the hospital incur a fee. For example if you break a bone and it just needs a cast you will be treated for free, if it needs an operation to ﬁxate the bone you will incur the cost of the surgery and subsequent hospital stay. this cost will need to be covered by your insurance. if the person is from a country with a bilateral health agreement all their hospital treatment is free. these are: Nationals of, and UK nationals in, the following countries: armenia, azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia, croatia, Georgia, Gibraltar, Yugoslavia i.e. serbia & Montenegro, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Macedonia, Moldova, new Zealand, russia, tajikistan, turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan. Residents irrespective of nationality of the following countries: anguilla, australia, Barbados, British Virgin islands, Falkland islands, iceland, isle of Man, Montserrat, st. helena, turks and caicos islands. Residents of the European Union and European Economic Area countries: austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, cyprus (southern), czech republic, Denmark, estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, hungary, italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, netherlands, Poland, Portugal, republic of ireland, romania, slovakia, slovenia, spain, sweden, UK, plus iceland, Liechtenstein and norway. switzerland by special arrangement.

People entering the country are advised to ensure they have all necessary medication and full insurance cover. hiV treatment is not covered under emergency treatment agreements for non-UK citizens and can be expensive.

VISIT MANCHESTER

Visit Manchester salford Quays, northern Quarter, chinatown, castlefield, Millennium Quarter, Piccadilly, the Gay Village, spinningfields... With such separate and distinct areas, a wander around Manchester is an exploration of urban life. all these quarters have their own characteristic public spaces - often with special events and cultural celebrations. Manchester has a compact and accessible city centre. Most areas are within walking distance of each other and for everywhere else, or if you just want to save energy, hop onto the Metrolink, or jump aboard the free Metroshuttle. Manchester is easy to get to know and the city soon feels like home. Wherever you choose to go, the streets and squares fizz with life. With so much at street level, like some of the best shopping in the UK, it's easy to be distracted, but don't forget to look up. the architectural splendour of Manchester's Victorian past, and the glamour of its glass, steel and aluminium future are all above eye level - and each building has a story attached.

alternatively, a short tram journey to the Quays, Manchester's dynamic waterfront destination, provides shopping, sport, art, theatre, museums and world-class architecture all packed into one spectacular square mile. here you will also ﬁnd the imperial War Museum north and the Lowry, a unique arts and entertainment venue. sports fans can visit Old trafford, the home of Manchester United, which offers both museum and stadium tours. More than anything else, Manchester is about people. Mancunians have made an enormous contribution to all aspects of British life, be it architecture, music, sport, literature, politics and anything else you care to mention. But more than the great and the good, the ordinary people of Manchester make the place what it is. Whether visitors, newcomers or those born in and around the city, Manchester offers something for everyone. Who knows what you'll discover when you get here? You may even ﬁnd yourself.

Manchester’s Gay Village Manchester is home to the largest concentration of gay bars and clubs outside of London. 28 bars, seven restaurants and four nightclubs = one gay village.

Drinking in the Village the Gay Village is a focus for bars and clubs, but where to start? Well, probably your ﬁrst stop will be one of the massive gay café-bars lining canal street such as spirit, Queer or View. stylish and buzzy they're the spiritual home of gay Manchester. Grab a drink, whilst you meander through the gothic labyrinth of Via or try taurus, Velvet (don't miss the fabulous ﬁsh tank in the staircase) or crunch, perfect for whiling away the hours sipping chic cocktails. Or perhaps you fancy reclining the night away on a bed (yes, a bed) at the uber-trendy tribeca. the Gay Village is a big place and has room for all. company Bar attracts an older, male crowd - many dressed up in leather and rubber, whilst coyotes on the other hand attracts mainly women and hosts a range of themed nights. the rembrandt and churchills are proper Manchester pubs for the more mature crowd, meanwhile napoleons, just round the corner, is very proudly the oldest pub in the village.

VISIT MANCHESTER

Put on your dancing shoes

Shopping in Manchester

head to cruz 101 (the clue is in the title) for some old-fashioned drinking, dancing and who knows what else?

Manchester offers a heavenly experience for the committed shopper with bags of designers and all of the big name department stores including selfridges and harvey nichols within walking distance of each other. in the northern part of the city cutting-edge designers sell at a fraction of the cost they will eventually demand and the experience is enhanced by the presence of more than 500 bars and restaurants in which to rest your weary credit card.

Klub Mancunia is the biggest gay club in Manchester with so much energy it probably powers its own glitter balls: it really is Mancunian – three ﬂoors of dance, pop, funk and house. and thank the Manchester gods for Poptastic, at Mutz nutz – a haven of indie, cheesy chart and disco classics.

Culture in Manchester Gay clubbing wouldn't be complete without mentioning the naughty, but still very nice with it, Legends. this huge pleasure-spot has something for everyone, from the (relatively) well behaved Dorothy’s Bar to wild and wonderful foam parties in the (men-only) Mineshaft.

Beyond the village

“Britain’s most exciting 21st-century city – the envy of any urban centre in Europe’. Lonely Planet

there's more to Manchester than the Village. take the northern Quarter. it's stuffed full of cool bars such as socio rehab, Bluu or the funky, very now Mint Lounge. Visit the sumptuous Malmaison, or chic Obsidian. then there's cloud 23 at the hilton on Deansgate: situated in the dizzying heights of the 23rd ﬂoor at Beetham tower, it's even got its own express lift to whoosh you up to vodka martini heaven. Last but by no means least head across to the bar at harvey nichols, to enjoy a glass of very satisfying bubbly.

Eating in Manchester Whatever your appetite, from Vietnamese to Vegan, Manchester can cater to it. Offering over thirty cuisine's in numerous venues to suit every budget and some of the top chefs in the world including Marco Pierre White and Paul heathcote, the city deserves its reputation as a gastronome’s heaven.

enjoying an evening in Manchester has never been difﬁcult, though choosing what to do could pose a challenge. thirteen theatres hosting shows, operas, dance and drama and a wealth of smaller venues offer performances to suit all tastes. Manchester has a long and proud musical tradition and the spectacular Bridgewater hall hosts the city's three orchestras as well as welcoming world-class orchestras. chamber music, folk music, jazz, roots and drum & bass all have their place and even the buskers are worth hearing. should you wish to see a ﬁlm you will have to decide between 200 screens available in the city or perhaps Manchester's legendary nightclubs could offer the excitment you are looking for after dusk. if you fancy art, head to Manchester city art Gallery and check out its collection of impressionist and British Victorian art. if ancient history is more your thing, visit the Manchester Museum, home to one of the UK’s largest selections of egyptian mummies and classical artifacts. Bringing you up to date there’s the cornerhouse, Manchester’s centre for contemporary art including gallery space, bookshop and art-house cinema.

VISIT MANCHESTER

Manchester weather

The price of a pint

Weather averages in the month of June

this is a subject that is very close to our hearts, and probably to yours too. Our extensive research has revealed that the typical price of a pint of beer in Manchester is between £2.50 £3.00. this equates to just over $4 (Us), just under $5 (aus) and just over €3. not content with providing you with this information, we thought it only right and proper that we also gave you a comparison. in order to avoid any accusation of bias, we enlisted the help of www.pintprice.com who provided the following information:

City

Average Day Temperature

Average Night Temperature

Average Rain Fall Drizzle or in inchs Rainy Days

Manchester, UK

19c / 65F

10c / 50F

new York, Usa

27c / 80F

17c / 62F

amsterdam, netherlands

20c / 68F

11c / 52F

Paris, France

23c / 73F

13c / 55F

sydney, australia

18c / 64F

9c / 48F

source – www.myweather2.com

city Manchester new York London sydney Dublin

Price (UsD) 4.35 5.16 5.33 4.53 6.97

source: Pintprice.com

so there you have it, proof that Manchester has some of the cheapest beer around. however, we’re not just about price, but about quality too. Manchester is home to numerous famous breweries and excellent microbreweries. We recommend hyde’s, Joseph holt’s and the Marble Beer company and would be happy to help arrange brewery tours – they’re all within 15 minutes drive of the city centre.

“If London were to have a rival, Manchester would be it.” Lonely Planet

VISIT MANCHESTER

Extending your stay One of the most unique things about Manchester is its links to the rest of england's northwest and the UK. Within easy reach are breathtaking landscapes, vibrant seafronts and historic towns. Blackpool and Lancashire in Blackpool shops and shows, rollercoasters and restaurants, clubs and casinos provide endless entertainment, day and night. Blackpool can also act as the perfect base for exploring the rest of Lancashire with its beautiful countryside and inspirational coastal scenery.

Cheshire and Chester step back in time over 2000 years inside chester's ancient city walls, roman amphitheatre and splendid norman cathedral. edged by the beautiful river Dee, the city has developed around the rows, medieval galleries which run through chester's half timbered buildings, now ﬁlled with fascinating shops. surrounding chester, the glorious cheshire countryside offers spectacular gardens, picturesque villages and distinctive black and white architecture.

spectacular scenery to inspire, fresh air and open spaces to refresh, peace and quiet to relax. sixteen great lakes, england's ﬁve highest mountains and almost 3000 kms of footpaths and cycleways leading to majestic fells, tranquil shores and lakeland villages. this is without question england's most beautiful corner.

after less than an hour's drive the visitor can reach the Peak and Lake Districts, aptly designated "areas of outstanding natural beauty". a little further away is Wales with endless coastline and awe-inspiring snowdonia national Park. the rolling and deserted north York Moors and northumbria's magniﬁcent beaches and castles are a couple of hours away.

Liverpool

London in two hours

Liverpool is known throughout the world as a city rich in music, art, culture and sport. as capital of culture in 2008 this was the city to see and be seen in. the city is famous as the birthplace of legenary band, the Beatles. Why not go on a Beatles inspired tour of the city?

a two-hour train journey will take you to Britain’s capital, London. Famous for Big Ben, the tower of London and Buckingham Palace, as well as being home to europe’s largest gay population.

Cumbria – the Lake District

Gateway to the North as half of Britain's motorways pass through the Manchester region and the city is served by excellent rail connections, getting away from Manchester is very easy, and its northerly situation means that the glories of scotland, the fascination of medieval cities such as York, as well as the stimulation of stratford are a short journey away.

GETTING HERE

Getting here Manchester beneﬁts from comprehensive local, national and global transport links. By air

By rail

Flight times to Manchester

Manchester airport is a global gateway ideally located just ten miles south of Manchester city centre.

Greater Manchester has a rail network of 142 route miles with 98 stations, forming a central hub to the northwest rail network.

Manchester airport hosts over 100 airlines ﬂying from over 200 destinations worldwide and boasts one of the most comprehensive domestic route networks of any UK airport.

Piccadilly is one of three main stations in Manchester and handles over 55,000 passengers and 1,000 train movements every day. it is the northern terminus of Virgin's ﬂagship route to London and offers direct services to other major UK cities, including Glasgow, edinburgh, Birmingham, cardiff and norwich.

We appreciate that for many people leave from work is a precious and all too scarce resource. every hour on a plane is an hour less on holiday. average shortest journey times to Manchester (including transfers) are: • 8 hours 48mins from eastern north america • 10 hours 47mins from central north america; and • 12 hours 41mins from western north america • 22 hours 40 mins from australasia

By road road access to and around Manchester is excellent with over half of Britain's motorway network passing through the region. the M60 is Manchester's orbital motorway allowing easy access to the rest of Greater Manchester.

Via London, the city connects to the eurostar train network to Paris, Brussels and Lille.

Notes: Flights times are the average shortest trip ‘duration’ from the following cities; Eastern North America: Ottawa, toronto, new York, atlanta, charlotte, nashville, Boston, Philadelphia. Central North America: Dallas, houston, chicago, Minneapolis, austin. Western North America: san Francisco, La, seattle, san Diego, Phoenix and Vancouver. Australasia: sydney and Melbourne. Flight data was taken from expedia on 25 July 2010 and is based on travel during the same dates as our tournament in 2011

Manchester Airport Scheduled Flights DOMESTIC SCHEDULED FLIGHTS aberdeen Belfast (intl) Belfast (city) Bournemouth Bristol cork Derry Dublin edinburgh exeter Galway Glasgow Guernsey isle of Man inverness Jersey Kerry Knock London London heathrow newquay norwich Plymouth southampton Waterford

bmi bmibaby Flybe Flybe air southwest bmibaby, aer Lingus aer arann aer Lingus, ryanair bmi, Flybe Flybe aer arann bmi, Flybe aurigny, Flybe Flybe Flybe bmibaby, Flybe aer arran bmibaby Gatwick British airways bmi, British airways bmibaby, air southwest Flybe air southwest Flybe aer arann

INTERNATIONAL SCHEDULED FLIGHTS abu Dhabi alicante almeria amsterdam antwerp avignon antalya

athens atlanta Barbados Barcelona Basel Bastia Bergerac Billund

etihad airways Monarch scheduled, Jet2.com, bmibaby, easyJet Monarch scheduled KLM, bmibaby air France Flybe Kibris turkish airlines, Monarch scheduled, thomsonﬂy, thomas, cook airlines easyjet Delta air Lines Virgin atlantic Monarch scheduled, bmibaby swiss international air Lines easyJet Flybe British airways

Bordeaux Brest Brussels Budapest calgary cape Verde chambery chicago cologne copenhagen crete Dalaman Jet2.com Doha Dubai Dubrovnik Dusseldorf Faro Frankfurt Funchal airlines Geneva Gibralter Gothenburg Gran canaria hamburg hanover helsinki ibiza islamabad istanbul Karachi Kos Lahore Lanzarote Larnaca La rochelle Lisbon Limoges Ljubliana Lourdes Lyon Malaga Malta Marrakech Menorca

bmibaby Flybe Flybe, Brussels airlines, ryanair Jet2.com air transat thomas cook airlines Jet2.com american airlines Germanwings sas, easyJet easyJet, Jet2.com Kibris turkish airlines, Qatar airways emirates Jet2.com Flybe, Lufthansa Jet2.com, Monarch scheduled Flybe, Lufthansa Jet2.com, thomas cook bmibaby, Jet2.com, easyJet, swiss international air Lines Monarch scheduled city airline Las Palmas - Jet2.com Lufthansa Flybe Finnair Jet2.com, Monarch scheduled air Blue, Pakistan international airlines turkish airlines Pakistan international airlines Jet2.com Pakistan international airlines Monarch scheduled, Jet2.com cyprus airways, easyJet Flybe bmibaby Flybe adria bmibaby bmi bmibaby, Jet2.com, easyJet, Monarch scheduled, thomson air Malta, easyJet thomson, easyJet Monarch scheduled

Milan Monastir Munich Murcia new York (newark) new York (JFK)

nice Orlando Oslo Paderborn Palma Paphos Paris Philadelphia Pisa Prague rennes rome reykjavik rhodes salzburg sharm el sheik singapore soﬁa split stockholm stuttgart tel aviv tenerife tolouse toronto tripoli Vancouver Venice Zurich

Flybe thomsonﬂy, Jet2.com, thomas cook airways Lufthansa, easyJet Jet2.com, Monarch scheduled continental airlines Delta airlines, Pakistan international airlines, american airlines Jet2.com Virgin atlantic sas air Berlin Mallorca bmibaby, Jet2.com, Monarch scheduled cyprus airways, easyJet air France, Flybe Us airways Jet2.com bmibaby, csa czech airlines Flybe Jet2.com icelandair Jet2.com thomson, Jet2.com Jet2.com singapore airlines easyJet Jet2.com sas Lufthansa Jet2.com Monarch scheduled, Jet2.com, easyJet bmibaby air transat Libyan arab air transat, Jet2.com swiss international air Lines

GETTING AROUND MANCHESTER

Getting around Manchester Manchester offers a comprehensive local public transport system. Bus: Buses are an excellent way to explore the city-region. a comprehensive network of buses offer fast and frequent services to many destinations. in the city centre hop on one of the Metroshuttle buses. they are free and link the main rail stations, shopping areas and businesses. www.gmpte.com trams: Metrolink is Manchester’s innovative tram system. it allows easy travel in the city centre and further a ﬁeld. Because Metrolink runs every few minutes you don’t need a timetable, just turn up and go anytime from early morning until late in the evening. www.metrolink.co.uk

Manchester Piccadilly, Victoria, Oxford road and Deansgate. Piccadilly is the main hub and is most visitors’ principal arrival point into the city, also has direct services to Liverpool, Blackpool, the Lake District and chester. Daysaver is a travelcard accepted by most bus, train and tram companies and allows you to transfer effortlessly from one form of transport to another, as many times as you wish. www.systemonetravelcards.co.uk Further transport information: call traveline +44 (0)871 200 22 33 or visit www.gmpte.com. You can also visit a GMPte travelshop at the bus station at Piccadilly, shudehill interchange and other bus stations in the city-region.

Taxis there are a wide range of taxi firms operating in the Greater Manchester region, during large scale conferences and events the city is well served to ensure travel is efficient and effective. Mantax - established in 1962 and under current ownership since 1978, Mantax radio taxis is a family run business which has firmly established itself as Manchester’s leading supplier of purpose built hackney carriages. With a fleet of approximately 300 taxis, Mantax is the largest supplier of licensed taxis in Manchester. the service is available 24 hours a day 365 days per year, and the entire fleet is wheelchair accessible.

trains: Local rail services connect Manchester airport with the city-region and the city centre. there are four key train stations in the centre:

ACCOMMODATION

EXTENDING YOUR STAY

Accommodation Gold package a choice of the 5* and boutique hotels of city centre Manchester.

there are more than 17,000 spaces in hotels and serviced accommodation in Manchester.

Silver package Pick from the best 4* international and British hotel chains. We’ll also offer serviced apartments in this package as well.

We realise players and supporters have different budgets. that’s why we’ve worked with our partner Visit Manchester to create special accommodation packages for the Bingham cup, all backed up by a professional online and telephone booking service.

Bronze package a choice of the best 3* hotels.

accommodation in Manchester ranges from the 5 * Lowry or radisson edwardian hotels and the boutique Great John street hotel to international chains like the hilton and value establishments like Premier inn.

in line with our rugby in the heart of the city pledge, all hotels offered will be in Manchester city centre. Packages will be booked direct from the Manchester 2012 Bingham cup website, backed by technology provided by our partners Visit Manchester. Our partners will also provide a telephone enquiry service for any accommodation queries.

We’ll offer three accommodation packages, allowing you to best pick the accommodation to suit your team’s needs and budget.

Manchester’s accommodation options Hotel Classification

Number of Hotels

No of rooms/apartments

5 star

588

4 star

2755

3 star or 2 star

2585

hotel (ungraded)

147

serviced apartments

367

B&B or Guesthouse

364

Budget hotel

1895

hostel / studentaccommodation

3265

COST OF ATTENDING & REGISTRATION

Cost of attending & registration Mindful of the economic climate and the fact that many of you told us that cost is a key issue for you, we have strived to ensure that Manchester 2012 offers an excellent value proposition. We have worked hard to keep fees as low as possible, while delivering a tournament well worth the effort of travelling to. in addition, our accessible location also means many teams will be able to travel to Manchester for a manageable cost.

Our current schedule of fees is set out below. Payment of all fees will be in pounds sterling (GBP).

early registration standard registration

Fees it is important to recognise that putting on a tournament like the Bingham cup does cost money and that today corporate sponsorship is increasingly challenging to attract. With these points in mind, we have set registration fees that we believe are realistic to deliver a viable tournament and keep the cost to participants down.

supporter

£100

£80

£130

£90

For simplicity we will offer just early and standard registration for both players and supporters regardless, whether as individuals or as a group.

Financial model a detailed budget is provided later in this document and it demonstrates that Manchester 2012 does not rely on substantial corporate sponsorship. Of course, we’ll be making every effort to attract sponsors and are already in discussions with major airlines, breweries and sportswear business, among others. any sponsorship that is forthcoming will be reﬂected in reduced registration fees once conﬁrmed.

Player

Whole cost of attending Manchester 2012 the cost of attending a Bingham cup goes beyond more than just fees. in the interests of being open and honest, below we have tried to give you an indication of the total cost of attending Manchester 2012. this includes ﬂights, accommodation and registration fee. Please note flight and accommodation prices are indicative only and may go up or down. All prices are in pounds sterling (GBP).

Average flight cost

Accommodation

Registration

Total

789.00

138.60

100.00

1047.00

717.00

138.60

100.00

976.00

europe

124.00

138.60

100.00

383.00

australasia

1543.00

138.60

100.00

1801.00

central north america

767.00

138.60

100.00

1025.00

Western north america eastern north america

Notes • accommodation is based on a six-night stay in a three star hotel in central Manchester with two sharing a double or twin room. • Flights are based on the average cost of a return trip to Manchester for one person from the following cities • eastern north america: Ottawa, toronto, new York, atlanta, charlotte, nashville, Boston, Philadelphia • central north america: Dallas, houston, chicago, Minneapolis, austin • Western north america: san Francisco, La, seattle, san Diego, Phoenix and Vancouver • europe: Paris, amsterdam, Dublin, copenhagen, Lisbon, Madrid, Lyon, Montpellier, newcastle, London • australasia: sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, auckland • Flight data was taken from expedia on 18 July 2010 and is based on travel during the same dates as our tournament in 2011

COST OF ATTENDING & REGISTRATION

Subsidised registration We recognise that participation is critical to ensure the success of the 2012 and future Bingham cups and we believe that the cost of getting to the Bingham cup should not be a barrier for teams and individuals who want to compete. in line with previous tournaments, we intend to offer subsidised registrations in a way that will encourage teams to register as many members as possible in the early registration window. But, unlike previous tournament, subsidies for Manchester 2012 will reﬂect the distance and cost of travel of participating teams. Our subsidy model will ensure that any team registering more than 15 players in the early registration period will receive a number of subsidised registration places. reﬂecting the cost of travel to Manchester 2012, the number of subsidised registrations given to a team will be as follows: • • • • • •

Mainland UK - 1 subsidised registration eslewhere in europe - 2 subsidised registrations eastern north america - 4 subsidised registrations central north america - 6 subsidised registrations Westerns north america - 8 subsidised registrations australasia - 10 subsidised registrations

requests for subsidies from unafﬁliated players will be considered on their merits by the Organising committee. subsidised registrations will represent a 30% discount on the early registration fee, therefore saving each subsidised player £30, which equates to $46 (Us), €36 or $52 (aus). this also equates to approximately 11 pints of beer! to qualify for this subsidy, teams must complete registration and make full payment for over 15 players prior to the close of early team registration.

Registration Whether player or supporter, registration will be online via the Manchester 2012 Bingham cup website. this website will be the portal through which you pay registration fees, submit your insurance waiver, submit your permission to travel notiﬁcation and tell us about any changes you’d like to make to your registration. We intend to use the tried and tested team liaison method to enable easy registration but we will simplify the system so that players and supporters can register and pay at the same time online. individuals and non-afﬁliated players will be able to register at the same time as teams. the proposed schedule is as follows (based on a tournament dates of 1-3 June 2012):

Transfer of registration early registration opens

10th October 2011

early registration closes

31st December 2011

standard registration opens

1st January 2012

Window for registration transfer

4th May 2012 to 18th May 2012

submission of permission to travel deadline

18th May 2012

standard registration closes

18th May 2012

On application to the tournament registration team, we will transfer a paid registration from one player to another on the same team. this registration will not be considered ﬁnal until the new player has completed the necessary insurance waiver online. there will be a ﬁxed time window for the transfer of any registration.

Permission to travel early group registration opensan outline of the proposed process is as follows: 1. teams wishing to participate will nominate a team liaison and they will register their team for the 2012 Bingham cup 2. registration is then opened for that team’s players and supporters, and their team selection button enabled in the drop down box on the booking website 3. individual team members will then register online, paying via PayPal and completing the online insurance waiver form. note: payment and the insurance waiver form must be completed if registration is to be successful 4. team liaisons will be automatically notified when a player or supporter from their team registers. they will be prompted to contact the organising committee immediately if a player or supporter is not part of their party (in which case the person will be notified and a refund provided via Paypal) 5. team liaisons will be notified when registration is complete for their team 6. team liaisons will be allowed to change players in their a and B sides until one week before the tournament starts Players not affiliated to a team will be able to register at any point in the process.

Players or teams that are not part of a club afﬁliated to the english rFU must obtain a permission notiﬁcation from their home rugby association. the tournament registration team must receive all relevant permissions before 18th May 2012 in order for a club to participate in Manchester 2012.

Insurance Before coming to the Manchester 2012 Bingham cup, all teams will be required to submit our insurance waiver form. this will be available online at the time of registration. if this form is not complete, a team will not be able to play. Players and supporters are responsible for taking out necessary insurance to cover their travel to the UK.

PLAYER COMMUNICATION

Player communication We realise the success of any tournament relies on providing players and supporters with the right information at the right time. If our bid is successful, we will publish a communications calendar and stick to it. Two programmes will be put in place: one for team liaison and one for players once they have registered. All communication will be via email and will comply with UK data protection laws. To give you an illustration of how this will work, we have outlined our proposed communications schedule to team liaisons (via club presidents in the early stages in the absence of team liaisons being nominated) up to the start of our tournament.

Communication

When

Confirmation of tournament structure and date

Club presidents

6th December 2010

Notification of registration schedule

Club presidents

31st May 2011

Request for nomination of team liaison

Club presidents

1st July 2011

Reminder of registration schedule and process

Team liaison

1st August 2011

Notification of team registration required

Team liaison

1st August 2011

Reminder team registration required

Team liaison

2nd September 2011

Bingham briefing 1 - including accommodation options

Team liaison

10th October 2011

Notice that early registration opens

Team liaison

10th October 2011

Reminder early registration closes

Team liaison

10th December 2011

Notice early registration closed

Team liaison

31th December 2011

Team registration update 1

Team liaison

14th November 2011

Notice standard registration opens

Team liaison

1st January 2012

Bingham briefing 2 – what to expect in Manchester

Team liaison

30th January 2012

Bingham briefing 3 – month to go update

Team liaison

30th April 2012

Notice of registration window transfer

Team liaison

4th May 2012

Reminder registration window transfer

Team liaison

14th May 2012

Reminder permission to travel and registration close

Team liaison

14th May 2012

Notice transfer window closed

Team liaison

18th May 2012

Notice standard registration closes and permission to travel closed

Team liaison

18th May 2012

Final team registration update

Team liaison

21st May 2012

Bingham briefing 4 – week to go update

Team liaison

26th May 2012

Welcome to Manchester

Team liaison

30th May 2012

Our commitment to effective communication does not stop when the tournament starts. Starting on the Wednesday before the tournament, we propose to have short captain and coach briefings each evening. At these briefings, the tournament organisers will: • Pass on all necessary information about the next day’s play in the tournament; • Take questions and clarify any issues coaches or captains may have; • Receive feedback and agree actions where required; and • Provide details of planned socials.

Liaison We believe the success of any Bingham Cup lies upon speedy and timely communication with the IGRAB executive. At this year’s IGRAB board meeting, mention was made of the executive’s aspiration to have one of its members act as a Bingham Cup liaison officer, providing a direct line of communication between the winning city and IGRAB.

The Manchester Village Spartans requests the IGRAB executive nominate such a representative if it has not already done so to aid in the smooth delivery of any winning bid, whoever is successful.

OUTREACH, SPONSORSHIP & MARKETING

Outreach, sponsorship & marketing Manchester 2012 will continue the tradition of using the Bingham cup as a foundation to promote diversity in rugby. the way we’ll achieve this is by out reach: to the media and the LGBt community. Media outreach

LGBT Community outreach

We’ll use the Bingham cup as a platform to generate positive press coverage of gay men in rugby.

Manchester is home to a collection of gay and lesbian sports clubs ranging from swimming and tennis to football and running.

By 2012, Manchester will be the headquarters of the sports programming department of the British Broadcasting corporation (the main public service broadcaster in the UK) as well as home to UK’s largest news and sport radio station - BBc radio 5 Live. all UK national newspapers also retain an ofﬁce in Manchester.

We are also fortunate to have a number of advocacy groups and charities serving the community including the Lesbian and Gay Foundation and George house trust.

We will use these as a foundation on which to roll out a public relations programme targeted at the UK mainstream media which challenges perceptions of gay men in sport, and which showcases the global talent of the gay rugby community. We will seek active participation from all players and supporters in this programme to bring the Bingham cup story to life. Our media outreach programme will focus on sports journalists. in delivering this programme, we will be partnering with the rugby Football Union (rFU) and its equity ofﬁce.

all groups will be targeted to drive participation and supporter numbers and provide a pool of volunteers to assist in the delivery of our tournament.

Marketing & sponsorship Manchester has a history of delivering LGBt and sporting events that have attracted sponsorship from major brands and companies. We will work with potential sponsors to ensure they have a credible presence that delivers them a return on investment through presence in the tournament brochure, at the tournament village at Broughton Park and at opening/closing parties. the ﬁnancial model of our tournament does not rely on signiﬁcant corporate sponsorship to be viable. We are, however, in discussions with a number of major businesses about backing our bid. these include hydes Brewery, sports Direct and Gaydar.

LEGACY & SUSTAINABILITY

Legacy & sustainability Legacy

Sustainability

a successful Manchester bid will help promote gay rugby. as Britain is a relatively mature rugby market, we expect to be able to welcome new teams from Bristol, Leeds and the Midlands to Manchester 2012.

We realise that when you bring 1,000 plus people from across the globe together in one place to play three days of rugby, it has an impact on our environment.

Perhaps more importantly, we are hopeful of being able to welcome teams from Portugal and spain where rugby is not widely played. should any surplus be generated from Manchester 2012, and assuming the issue of the legal basis of iGraB has been resolved, we will covenant proﬁts back to iGraB. We will do this on the explicit understanding that they are used to create a travel bursary to help teams and individuals get to future Bingham cups where travel costs are a barrier to attendance. We request the iGraB executive speedily address the outstanding issue of the legal basis of the association and board in order to help make this possible and we offer our support to make this happen.

that’s why we will take steps to minimise the environmental impact of Manchester 2012. We will do this by: • encouraging players and supporters to carbon offset their ﬂights to Manchester at the time of registering; • Minimising the use of disposable crockery used at tournament catering, and where it is used we will ensure it is full recyclable; • Providing players with a water bottle to avoid the use of bottled water; • encouraging local Manchester players and supporters to use public transport to reach our tournament venue. We will do this by promoting the use of Metrolink and by providing bicycle parking at our tournament village.

Our preferred partner for carbon offsetting is JP Morgan climate care (www.jpmorganclimatecare.com), which provides carbonoffsetting schemes for Lonely Plant, Land rover and Barclays Bank.

BUDGET

Budget a ﬁnancial model for Manchester 2012 has been prepared, including a breakdown of income and expenditure. the model is based on three different levels of attendance. Our model is in pound sterling (£), however, a budget in Us dollars has been provided as an appendix.

Attendance assumptions and income assessment

number of teams Players per squad

Planned

Low

High

Notes 1

total Players

726

375

950

supporters (based on players/supports 5:1)

145

190

Notes

Participant registration fees

70,062

40,862

99,462

supporters registration fees

10,560

6,000

12,160

sponsorship / advertising

10,000

7,260

3,750

9,500

97,882

60,612

131,122

Venue

8,750

Merchandising inventory

3,630

1,875

4,750

security

7,500

Other playing costs

2,000

1,000

2,000

Player amenities

2,538

1,485

3,210

sanitation and cleaning

2,720

1,470

2,805

transport

8,225

4,248

10,763

safety and ﬁrst aid

2,978

Days of play Income

Merchandising income TOTAL INCOME Expenditure

insurance

652

1,000

Marketing and website costs

4,000

2,000

5,000

Legal

1,000

Bank charges

1,612

937

2,232

37,007

17,450

45,340

Player catering

Opening / closing party

2,890

1,493

4,253

TOTAL COSTS

85,503

52,839

101,582

contingency of 10%

8,550

5,284

10,158

NET INCOME

3,829

2,490

19,382

BUDGET

Note 1

Note 6

Note 13

Attendance attendance assumptions have been made based on historic attendance at previous tournaments. in light of the cost of travel and the difficult economic conditions currently prevailing, the low attendance case has been tested to determine that the tournament is financially viable even on very low attendance figures.

Security Player areas will be fully fenced and monitored by a full time security team. costs are based on quotations received based on modelled attendance numbers.

Marketing and website costs We are able to support the development of our website from resources within the club membership and will utilise marketing strategies and the resources of our venue partner, Marketing Manchester and the Manchester Gay Village Business association to ensure that the event achieves maximum media coverage and attendance.

it is assumed in each of the forecast cases that squad numbers would ﬂuctuate depending on the overall attendance at the tournament. Supporters We have assumed one supporting registrant for every ﬁve registered players. We consider this assumption to be prudent based anecdotal observation from previous tournaments.

Note 2 Registration fees registration fees constitute the tournament’s main revenue stream. the Manchester 2012 model has been established to ensure that the tournament remains viable at all attendance levels. in order to achieve this, the base registration fee will be increased marginally on previous tournaments at £100 per participating registrant and £80 per supporter. however the average cost per participant after subsidy will remain in line with previous tournaments at an average of £94 for participants. Subsidy Model the subsidy model has been established to encourage attendance at the tournament. teams registering more than 15 players will attract a subsidy on registration of 30% dependent on the distance travelled to the tournament.

Note 3 Sponsorship revenue Prudent sponsorship expectations have been incorporated into the Manchester 2012 ﬁnancial model to ensure that the tournament will remain viable with no major sponsorship. however, Manchester’s Gay Village retains over 35 bars, clubs and restaurants, and numerous other businesses connected with and supportive of the LGBt community. therefore, this revenue assumption is conservative.

Note 4 Merchandising Merchandising revenue has been estimated on the assumption that 1 registrant in 3 will spend an average of £30.

Note 5 Venue Based on conﬁrmed venue booking with Broughton Park rUFc.

Note 7 Other playing costs Other playing costs represent costs for player administration and referees fees and expenses. referees will be sourced from the cheshire and Lancashire rugby Football Unions and therefore we anticipate that expenses will be kept to a minimum.

Note 8 Player amenities Player amenities comprise the players’ tented village and rest areas. Player area needs have been costed based on estimated square metres provided at previous tournaments. the tented village will supplement the wide range of facilities available at Broughton Park rFc, use of which is included in our quoted venue costs.

this budget line will also cover administrative communications for the tournament.

Note 14 Legal & professional fees estimated provision required to cover the tournament operating company’s legal structure and to provide specialist advice to supplement expertise within the membership base.

Note 15 Bank fees and charges Fees and commissions based on 2% of income collected by credit card.

Note 9 Note 16 Sanitation and cleaning Based on quotation from preferred suppliers.

Note 10 Transport Given the proximity of the playing venue to accommodation in Manchester city centre, we have developed our transport assumptions on a shuttle service running at 5 minute intervals at peak playing times, and every 20 minutes thereafter throughout the days of play.

Opening/Closing Events Opening and closing event costs have been based on the per head cost quoted by the venues.

Note 17 Player catering costed packed lunch for all players provided for the 3 day period of the tournament.

Note 18 Note 11 Safety & first aid safety requirements have been established by reference to insurance quotation requirements and communication with the st John ambulance service. costs are based on full time attendance of 2 ambulances, each staffed by 2 qualified paramedics. in addition we have costed in attendance of a further 2 fully qualified medics. treatment for minor injuries will be provided within Broughton Park rFcs treatment rooms. Manchester royal infirmary is 10 minutes from the playing venue.

Note 12 Insurance insurance cover for the event has been quoted based on public liability insurance to a level of £10m. note that players will however require their own medical and travel insurance.

Contingency the financial model has been designed to ensure that all fixed costs are covered by registration fees, however a 10% contingency has been factored in for unexpected variations in final invoiced cost.

SUPPORT ORGANISATION & INFRASTRUCTURE

Support organisations & infrastructure in the delivery of Manchester 2012, we have partnered with a number of professional organisations. For iGraB this means you can have conﬁdence we can deliver what we have promised.

The Manchester 2012 Bid Committee We recognise hosting the Bingham cup needs resources, and that’s why we’ve assembled a team of people with the right professional experience to deliver an outstanding tournament.

Alex Smith: bid chairman With more than 14 years experience in ﬁnancial services, alex works for one of europe’s largest banks – Lloyds Banking Group, as a senior manager in their Wealth & international division. alex has played for the Village spartans since 2007, having previously played for clubs in Liverpool and scotland in his 20 year playing career. alex is the club’s chairman and is chair of the Manchester 2012 bid. alex has been to two Bingham cups.

David Brewster: travel, transport and logistics David is a specialist in getting people from a to B thanks to his 20 years experience in the travel industry. he currently holds a senior management role at european travel giant, thomas cook. David has been playing for the Manchester Village spartans since 2003. David has been to four Bingham cups.

Tim Thornton: treasurer tim is a chartered forensic accountant. he currently works for accountancy ﬁrm BDO LLP and has ﬁve years experience as a professional accountant. tim is a Manchester Village spartans player and supporter and has been playing for the team since 2007. tim has been to two Bingham cups.

Paul Wheeler: communications Paul is a corporate communications professional with more than a decade of experience in public relations. Paul is currently UK communications manager for cereal and snack company Kellogg’s. he has supported the Manchester Village spartans since 2000 and has attended four Bingham cups, including the 2002 san Francisco tournament as well as the 2001 Washington Dc rugby invitational.

Marlon Morais: sponsorship Marlon is a trained doctor working in general practice in Manchester. he was born and bred in Manchester and is passionate about introducing others to his wonderful city and its hidden gems. Marlon has played for the Village spartans since 2007 and he has attended one Bingham cup.

Matt Whiteley: player consultant & team liaison Matt is a chartered town planner working in urban regeneration. he acts as the central liaison between the bid committee and the Manchester Village spartans and acts as a player champion. Matt has played for the Village spartans since 2000 and he has attended all Bingham cups including the 2001 Washington Dc rugby invitational and 2002 san Francisco tournament. he was instrumental in delivering the Village spartans rugby clinics in the early 2000s.

Partners

Manchester City Council Manchester is one of the largest metropolitan authorities in the UK. the council’s rugby development team is supporting us in the delivery of this bid through its ofﬁcer, Phil clarke.

this bid is the bid of the city of Manchester not just the Manchester Village spartans. as such, we are fortunate to count a number of organisations as partners in this bid. Visit Manchester & Marketing Manchester the ofﬁcial tourist board of Manchester is responsible for promoting our city in the UK, europe and internationally. the organisation has a dedicated accommodation and conference desk, which will provide a hotel booking service for this bid. Visit Manchester & Marketing Manchester also co-ordinate a number of the city’s events, including its annual Pride festival.

RFU: office of head of equalities, Nick Scott the rugby Football Union is the governing body of rugby in england. its equalities ofﬁce is a vital partner in our delivery, bringing best practice and the expertise of a major national governing body to this bid.

SUMMARY

Summary We have all the components in place to deliver an outstanding Bingham cup, which we believe will honour the memory of Mark Bingham. Our city is accessible, our tournament venue is conﬁrmed and we have the support of professional organisations to ensure our execution is excellent. We offer iGraB a Bingham cup which goes back to its roots and back to the early 2000s when the idea of international gay rugby was born. however, looking back doesn’t mean dwelling on the past. Manchester 2012 will raise the bar, it will help promote gay rugby in europe and any proﬁts will be used to create a legacy for future Bingham cups. Most of all we want Manchester 2012 to foster a spirit of rugby and further the ideal that anyone - regardless of background - can grab a ball and run out onto a rugby pitch. this is Manchester’s bid for the 2012 Bingham cup and i commend it to you. Yours in rugby,

alex smith, chairman, Manchester 2012 & chairman Manchester Village spartans rUFc

If you would like further information about Manchester’s bid, please contact me directly on 00-44-7984-524408 / alexm1972@yahoo.co.uk

“Let’s make the next Bingham Cup the Manchester one.” t J sullivan, chairman, Kings cross steelers rUFc

SUMMARY

APPENDIX

Appendix Details of Manchester flight calculations To Manchester (average flight cost) Western north america eastern north america central north america australasia europe

£789 £718 £767 £1543 £124

Notes • Flights are based on the average cost of a return trip to Manchester for one person from the following cities - West coast Usa: san Francisco, La, seattle, san Diego, Phoenix and Vancover - east coast Usa: Ottawa, toronto, new York, atlanta, charlotte, nashville, Boston, Philadelphia - europe: Paris, amsterdam, Dublin, copenhagen, Lisbon, Madrid, Lyon, Montpellier, newcastle, London - australasia: sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, auckland - central north america: Dallas, houston, chicago, Minneapolis, austin • Flight data was taken from expedia on 18 July 2009 and is based on travel during the same dates as our tournament in 2011

Budget in US Dollars (USD/$) Attendance assumptions and income assessment Planned

Low

number of teams

High 38

Players per squad

total Players

726

375

950

supporters (based on players/supports 5:1)

145

190

Days of play

Income USD

USD

Participant registration fees

107,181

62,511

152,157

supporters registration fees

16,155

9,179

18,602

sponsorship / advertising

15,298

Merchandising income

11,106

5,737

14,533

TOTAL INCOME

149,740

92,724

200,590

Venue

13,386

Merchandising inventory

5,553

2,868

7,267

security

11,474

Other playing costs

3,060

1,530

3,060

Player amenities

3,883

2,272

4,911

sanitation and cleaning

4,161

2,249

4,291

Expenditure

transport

12,583

6,499

16,465

safety and ﬁrst aid

4,556

insurance

997

1,530

Marketing and website costs

6,119

3,060

7,649

Legal

1,530

Bank charges

2,467

1,434

3,415

Opening / closing party

56,614

26,695

69,361

Player catering

4,421

2,284

6,507

TOTAL COSTS

130,802

80,832

155,399

contingency of 10%

13,080

8,083

15,540

NET INCOME

5,857

3,809

29,651